Population Density + Immunization Refusal = Potential Outbreak

The recent exposure of a shopping mall to measles in Rockland, NY is a reminder of how important childhood immunization programs are and the need for ongoing surveillance of infectious disease patterns.

Three spatial behaviors define how outbreaks occur and the patterns by which they are likely to spread.

1) Population density is important to understanding these patterns due to likelihood of contact and the development of new victims.

2) Transportation and communication patterns define where people travel and aggregate, and the most likely routes to be taken by diseases or health problems imported from other locations.

3) In some cases, local land use patterns, and socioeconomics and human behavioral patterns help to define those parts of the country that are more susceptible to certain diagnoses and new cases than others.